Role Models (a McRoll in the REAL World story)
by sammy1026
Summary: Mary, Aaron and Joan visit the island for 4th of July.
1. Chapter 1

_Mari & Ilna-_ _"Stopped they must be; on this all depends. Only a fully-trained Jedi Knight, with the Force as his ally, will conquer Vader and his Emperor."_

 _Sandy-_ _"Feel the force!"_

 _REAL Worlders-_ _"You will know (the good from the bad) when you are calm, at peace. Passive. A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack."_

 _Today's ANs brought to you by the one and only Yoda._

* * *

 **Role Models (1/2)**

 _The fabulous Mari and I are flipping posting days next week so look for part 2 of this story on Monday. But don't worry, you won't miss a Mari story. She'll be posting next Friday the 8th and then we'll be back to normal the week after_.

Also-this fic references the Terriaga case which was from my earlier fic Obsession. You don't need to have read that to understand this but if you're wondering if that case has been referenced before—there's your answer.

 **McGarrett Rollins Home**

 **Saturday**

 **8:15 A.M.**

"Ann Caf!" Joan shrieked happily as she exited the house and ran quickly across the deck towards where Catherine was seated, Mary and Aaron close behind, though moving far more slowly.

The three had arrived well after dark the previous night. Mary and Aaron, exhausted after a later than usual flight, carried a slumbering Joan upstairs immediately then, after retrieving the luggage from the rental car, headed to bed themselves, too exhausted to say much more than goodnight. Getting on a plane past Joan's bedtime was definitely not their first choice but it was the only flight available to them on the travel-heavy holiday weekend.

They squinted against the morning sunshine, yawning in tandem, while Joan happily greeted the day, excited to have found herself at Uncle Steve and Aunt Catherine's house when she awoke.

"Hello there, angel!" Catherine said as Joan held her arms up and Catherine readily complied with her unspoken request, placing the young girl on her lap. After a round of kisses and hugs with her favorite niece she turned to Mary and Aaron and smiled sympathetically.

"There's fresh coffee in the pot and juice in the fridge. Steve and I decided to wait until you guys got up to make breakfast."

"Thanks," Aaron said gratefully as he turned and headed back into the house.

"Unca Steve?" Joan craned her neck and looked around excitedly at the mention of his name.

"He's right there." Catherine pointed to where Steve was standing on the beach, talking on his cell phone while at the same time keeping a watchful eye on Cammie who was playing in the shallow water. "He'll be here in a minute."

"Unca Steve!" Joan squealed loudly.

Steve turned and waved at her with a bright smile.

Joan squirmed to get down. "I see Unca Steve."

Catherine placed her determined niece on the ground and watched as Joan made her way hurriedly across the sand towards her cherished uncle who had finished the call and returned his phone to his pocket. He took several long strides in her direction then scooped her up and lifted her over his head, her happy laughter filling the air. After a full minute he settled her on his hip, giving and accepting multiple kisses, and called for Cammie to follow as he headed back towards the house.

They made their way onto the deck, Joanie jabbering away happily, just as Aaron returned from the kitchen with coffee for himself and Mary.

"How'd everybody sleep?" Steve asked cheerfully as Joanie squirmed again to get down, this time to follow Cammie as she made her way towards Mary and Aaron to say hello.

"Like a log," Mary said around a yawn. "In fact I'd probably still be sleeping if your niece hadn't woken up so excited about seeing her favorite aunt and uncle. I tried to convince her to sleep a while longer but she wasn't having any of it."

Steve smiled. "That's my girl."

Mary rolled her eyes. "I suppose you've been up since dawn."

"Pretty much," Steve acknowledged.

"Who was on the phone?" Catherine asked. "Not a case I hope."

Steve shook his head. "Actually it was the governor. He wanted to ask a favor."

Aaron couldn't help but be impressed. "The governor calls you at home on a Saturday morning to ask for a favor?"

Steve smiled proudly. "Actually he wants a favor from Catherine."

"Me?"

"Yeah. You know that … " Steve paused and checked to see what Joanie was doing. Once he realized she was completely immersed in playing with Cammie and not paying a bit of attention to what they were saying he lowered his voice slightly and continued. " … human trafficking ring they busted last week?"

Catherine nodded.

"The families of the women rescued are anxious to get them back home, which is understandable, but first they all need to be interviewed and then they have to give official statements and … well … let's just say things are going a lot slower than anyone expected. The lieutenant governor is trying to speed things up so she asked Denning if Five-0 could loan you out to her for a few days to help. She remembers the great work you did on the Terriaga case plus most of the victims speak Pashto and she knows you're fluent."

"I'd be happy to help," Catherine said without hesitation. "If it's ok with my boss that is."

"We don't have a lot going on right now it should be fine unless some kind of emergency comes up." Steve nodded. "Those women need to get back to their families as soon as possible. I'm all for whatever it takes to make that happen."

Catherine glanced across the deck and saw that Joanie was now deep in conversation with Cammie who was hanging on every word the babbling youngster said. She turned back to Mary and Aaron.

"It's an awful case. A human trafficking ring dealing in everything from sexual exploitation to forced domestic servitude. It's been in operation for a little over a year as far as anyone can tell. The victims are mostly from the Middle East, Afghanistan primarily. Most of them were grabbed off the street, or in some cases right out of their own homes, then brought here to Hawaii where they were kept in locked rooms until they could be shipped off to 'buyers' all over the world.

Eventually the human garbage running the ring got greedy. They figured more women equals more money so they stepped things up.

Sadly, it can be pretty easy to move a few people at a time on and off the island so no one really noticed what was going on for months. That is until their greed made them careless and they tried to move almost a hundred women through on a freighter a few weeks ago. Luckily someone working the docks noticed and called the authorities.

Now not only are they helping get those women home they're trying to rescue as many of the others as possible."

"That's the kind of thing the governor's office handles?" Aaron asked, slightly confused. "I'd think that would be something for some federal agency to deal with."

"Actually it's the lieutenant governor that's taking point on this one," Steve explained. "She's coordinating things between all the agencies involved. Trying to cut through the red tape and make sure everyone plays nice and gets this handled as quickly as possible."

"Lea Kekoa is great," Catherine said sincerely. "She's native Hawaiian. Her family has been on the island for more generations than anyone can count. She's a product of public schools. Worked her way through the University of Hawaii. Went off to UCLA to get her masters then came back to the island and went straight into public service.

She was working as the head of a victim's rights advocacy group here in Honolulu when Denning recruited her to be his lieutenant governor."

"She sounds awesome," Mary said.

"She is," Catherine nodded. "She's a strong fighter for women's, children's and family rights."

"Plus, as Kamekona will tell you … repeatedly … she's his sixth cousin twice removed," Steve chuckled.

Catherine snorted. "Yeah, I think I've heard that a few times. Or a few dozen."

Suddenly Joan's head snapped up as if she'd just remembered something and she scrambled to her feet and ran to Mary.

"Water, Mama. Make pi-chers!" she implored. "I wear baving suit!"

"You ready to go for a swim?" Steve smiled at his niece.

"No," Joanie shook her head decisively. "Make water pi-chers! Pwease Mama."

Steve looked at Mary, his brows knit in confusion. "What does she want?"

"She wants to make water pictures, Uncle Steve." Mary smiled as she lifted Joan into her lap.

"Water pictures?" Steve asked.

"Yes." Mary tickled her daughter as Joan clapped excitedly. "She wants to play in your shower and make pictures on the tiles."

"Ahhh," Steve grinned.

Mary raised an eyebrow at her brother. "I wonder who taught her that?"

"How could I not?" Steve said with absolutely no remorse. "They're awesome tiles."

"I can't argue with you there," Mary acquiesced then kissed Joan's cheek. "How about if we eat breakfast first and then if Uncle Steve and Aunt Catherine say it's okay we'll play in the shower for a while."

"YAY!" Joan threw her arms in the air triumphantly.

* * *

An hour later, after a breakfast of scrambled eggs, english muffins and fresh fruit, Steve and Aaron headed out to pick up some supplies for the weekend barbecue while Catherine and Mary headed to the master bathroom with Joan, now wearing her favorite pink bathing suit, to play in the shower.

"Do you happen to have anything for a bug bite?" Mary asked. "Joan was scratching like crazy on the plane last night and I didn't see anything at the time but now I see a red bump on the back of her shoulder."

"There should be some ointment in the medicine cabinet," Catherine replied, "and I'll grab some band-aids from Grace's bathroom."

As Catherine made her way back down the hall after retrieving a box of brightly patterned band-aids she heard the toilet in the master bathroom flush followed by Mary's panicky voice saying, "No, peanut! Oh crap."

"What happened?" Catherine asked as she hurried into the room.

"I couldn't find the ointment at first," Mary said frantically as the water level in the toilet bowl rose quickly, "so I took a few things out and laid them on the counter thinking it might have slipped down behind something and Joan … well, flushing foreign objects down the toilet is her new thing."

Catherine glanced at Joan who was standing with her arms wrapped around Mary's legs and a stricken look on her face then turned to assess the situation with the toilet just as the water began to cascade over the top of the bowl. Seconds later she reached in and pulled out the extra boo-boo bunny they kept in their medicine cabinet, in addition to the two in the freezer at all times in case Joan or any of the other children ever needed it, which appeared to be the cause of the clog.

Immediately the water level began to recede and Mary let out a huge sigh of relief. Catherine took a second to gather the other items Joan had attempted to flush. A bottle of ibuprofen, some dental floss and her birth control pills.

When Mary recognized the familiar looking packaging she cringed. "Oh, Cath. I'm so sorry. Your pills."

"It's okay," Catherine assured her. "I've already taken today's. I'll just call CVS and get another pack."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Mary knelt in front of a teary Joan. "We've talked about this before, Joan. You can't flush things down the toilet. That's not what a toilet is for."

"I sowwy," Joan said quietly, her bottom lip quivering.

"They weren't our things this time; they were Aunt Catherine's."

"I sowwy Ann Caf." Joan couldn't meet her beloved aunt's eyes. "No water pi-chers," she said miserably.

Mary swallowed hard and looked at Catherine. "Now that she's a little older we've been talking about consequences," she explained. "She's starting to understand that when she does something wrong, especially something she's been corrected for in the past, there needs to be a punishment."

"No water pi-chers," Joan repeated as a tear ran down her cheek.

Catherine looked helplessly at Mary. She knew she shouldn't interfere with Mary disciplining her daughter but the devastated look on Joan's face was breaking her heart.

Joan sniffled and moved towards the door of the bathroom but Catherine blocked her path. She knelt down and looked the little girl directly in the eyes.

"I sowwy, Ann Caf," Joan sniffled.

"I know you are, Joan. Do you understand why you shouldn't throw things in the toilet?" Cath asked softly.

Joan nodded. "Only for going potty," she said. "I nev-ew do it again."

Mary sighed. "It was a big thing for a few weeks and I really thought we'd gotten past it but apparently all the excitement and the idea of a different toilet were too much for her."

Joan continued to stare at the floor as her sniffing became more intense.

"I have an idea," Catherine suggested, putting her finger under Joan's chin and lifting her head until their eyes met. "How about if I get us some towels and you help me clean up all this water as your punishment and then if you do a good job you can still make water pictures in the shower. IF it's okay with your mom that is."

Joan turned and looked at Mary hopefully.

"I think that would be fine," Mary agreed with a grateful smile.

"Ok then," Catherine said determinedly. "I'll be right back. I'm gonna grab some old towels."

She started to stand but was stopped by Joan's voice.

"I love you, Ann Caf," the young girl said as she held out her arms for a hug which Catherine happily gave her.

"I love you too, angel. Very, very much."

* * *

An hour later, after cleaning up the bathroom then spending time making pictures on the tiles in the shower, Mary and Catherine were in the kitchen prepping lunch while Joan sat at the table fully engrossed in a slideshow of pictures from Steve and Catherine's wedding on Mary's tablet.

"It's her favorite thing in the world," Mary explained as she grabbed some vegetables from the refrigerator. "She asks to watch it all the time."

Catherine grinned.

"What you did up there … coming up with a different idea for a punishment and saving the day … you're a natural," Mary said sincerely.

"Thanks. I didn't want to step on your toes but that look on her face was breaking my heart."

"I appreciate that but no worries," Mary waved her off. "I hear 'ya completely about that look. It can be a killer. I was kinda hoping for another option. I mean I know we need to be consistent with our discipline but sometimes she starts to cry and it's all I can do not to cry right along with her."

Catherine smiled. "You're a great mom, Mary. Absolutely great. She's just … well … a three-year-old."

Mary blew out a breath. "Everyone talks about the terrible twos but those were nothing compared to the threes. And we've only been in them for a month. I'm a little afraid of what's coming next."

Catherine chuckled.

"She's starting to really exert her independence. Wait until you hear her favorite new phrase."

"What phrase?" Catherine asked curiously.

Mary put down the knife she was using to cut cucumbers for the salad and took a few steps towards her daughter. "Hey peanut, do you need me to help you scroll through the pictures?"

"No," Joan said adamantly. "I can do it."

"And there it is," Mary said with a smile. "She wants to do everything herself. All the books I've read say it's perfectly normal, and in fact it's a good sign that she's meeting her developmental milestones, but it can be … challenging at times."

"I'll bet," Catherine sympathized.

Mary hesitated for a second and Catherine picked up on it and asked, "What?"

"I was talking to Jenna the other day and she told me about Jacob and his wish in the time capsule," Mary said.

Catherine nodded.

"I know it's none of my business and at the wedding I promised I wouldn't keep asking about it but …"

"We're talking about it," Catherine said with a soft smile. "Steve and I both want kids. We know it's gonna mean a lot of big changes though."

Mary reached out and touched Catherine's arm. "But that's really just a chance to become a new kind of butterfly, right?"

"Right." Catherine smiled, clearly touched by Mary's words. "We just want to make sure we're ready."

"I understand that, especially since I know how much you two like to be prepared but … truth is no one is ever completely ready," Mary said. "It's impossible. I'm sure you guys will be as close as any two people ever have been though."

"Were you ready?" Catherine asked. "I mean you made the decision to adopt Joan and I know you've loved her since day one but were you ready?"

"Some days I think I'm still not ready," Mary snorted. "But I wouldn't change a minute. The puke covered shoulders, the lack of sleep, the anxiety that I'm gonna screw her up … none of it means a thing compared to the way I feel knowing I get to get up every morning and be her mom."

Catherine swallowed around the lump in her throat. "At least I know if I'm lucky enough to become a mom I'll have a good role model so close."

Mary nodded, not catching her meaning. "Elizabeth is the absolute best."

"I agree," Catherine smiled. "But I wasn't talking about her. I was talking about you."

A minute later Steve and Aaron entered the kitchen carrying several bags of groceries and noticed Mary and Catherine's watery eyes.

"What's wrong?" they asked in unison.

"Nothing," Catherine assured them. "We're just being girly."

Mary chuckled and nodded her agreement.

"Nanas?" Joan asked excitedly, eyeing the bags.

"Yes, we got bananas," Aaron said, pulling the bunch from the bag and breaking one off. "Do you want me to cut it up for you?" he asked as he opened the stem.

"No, I can do it," Joan said as she took the banana and returned to her seat.

"That might get a little messy," Mary said as Joan took her first bite. "Are you sure you don't want help?"

"No, I can do it," Joan said as she used a banana covered finger to swipe to the next picture.

"Thank heavens for screen protectors," Mary sighed.

 **END CHAPTER 1**

* * *

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	2. Chapter 2

See ANs in Part 1

* * *

 **Role Models (2/2)**

 **McGarrett Rollins Home**

 **Monday**

 **10:30 A.M.**

"Hey, can you two keep an eye on Joan for a few minutes while I jump in the shower?" Mary asked as she finished up the last swallow of her coffee. A relaxing morning shower was a luxury she seldom got to enjoy at home and she relished the chance to get in one more before returning to Los Angeles.

Catherine had excused herself and gone into the house a few minutes earlier to take a call from the lieutenant governor while the others finished up a leisurely brunch on the deck. Steve explained that in addition to juggling her own hectic family schedule the lieutenant governor had a full slate of official appearances to make over the holiday weekend so she and Catherine had to fit in a phone call where they could.

Steve and Catherine had long ago learned that the key to a fun and successful barbecue, like most things in life, was pre-planning and to that end most of the prep work for the day's festivities had already been completed. Steve and Aaron had put up the volleyball net the previous night and Steve added ice and drinks to the coolers when he got back from his morning swim. The hamburgers and hotdogs were ready to go in the outdoor refrigerator, the side dishes were all prepped and Kaitlyn was bringing red, white and blue cupcakes and cookies to cover dessert.

"Sure thing." Steve smiled at his niece who stood just off the deck studying something on the ground which, judging by Cammie's level of interest, he guessed was probably a small lizard.

"Do you care if I use your bathroom so I can make some water pictures and enjoy that incredible showerhead?" Mary asked hopefully.

Steve grinned. "Knock yourself out."

"I'll try to keep it under an hour," she teased as she gathered some dishes to carry to the kitchen.

Steve watched as Joan leaned over as far as she could, peering intently under the deck, then stood up with her arms held out at her sides. "All gone."

"He must have wanted to get out of the sun," Steve said, imitating Joan's movement with his own arms. "Maybe he'll come back later."

Joan leaned over and looked one more time. "Come back later," she called in a sing song voice before taking a few steps then flopping down and fidgeting with the strap on her sandals. "Shoes off."

"I'm not even sure why we bother putting them on her at this point," Aaron chuckled. "She hates pretty much any pair, even the ones she picks out herself." He started to get up. "Do you want me to help you, pumpkin?"

"I can do it," the young girl insisted.

"Of course you can," Aaron sighed good naturedly as he retook his seat.

"She's growing up fast," Steve smiled as he watched first one shoe, then the other come off.

"She sure is," Aaron agreed.

He couldn't help but notice the contemplative look on Steve's face as he watched Joan discard her shoes and head immediately off to explore the new flower bed with Cammie right at her side.

It was something he'd noticed more than a few times since they arrived on Friday. At first he hadn't been able to place the look exactly but Saturday night, as he watched Steve, Catherine and Joan playing together on the beach, it dawned on him what was going on.

"I probably shouldn't say anything because it's none of my business … " he began.

"It's not too late to change your mind," Steve smirked.

"I'll risk it," Aaron said after thinking a few seconds about whether or not this was a conversation he really wanted to get into and deciding it was. "Are you and Catherine talking about having kids of your own?"

Steve's spine stiffened slightly but he never took his eyes off Joan and Cammie. "What makes you ask?"

One of the things Aaron respected most about Steve was that he was a man who believed strongly in the direct approach. Buoyed by that knowledge he took a deep breath and asked, "You want the truth?"

Steve glanced at the younger man, still keeping constant track of Joan. "Of course."

Aaron took a minute to gather his thoughts.

"Ever since we got here there's been something a little different about the way you look at Joan. Something … I don't know … it's the look in your eyes but … it's more than that too. At first I couldn't place it but then all of the sudden it came to me and I knew where I'd seen that look before. It was in the mirror every morning when I knew I was falling in love with Mary and … to be honest … wondered if I was ready to be a father to Joan."

The look of complete honesty on Aaron's face stopped Steve in his tracks.

He'd always thought of himself as someone who was very good at hiding his emotions. Playing his cards close to the vest. Not only was it part of his training it was a necessity both as a SEAL and in his position with Five-0.

But somehow Aaron had seen right through his facade and managed to put his finger on something that had been dominating Steve's thoughts more and more as of late.

The idea of being a father.

"How did you figure it out?" he asked genuinely. He felt like he was adrift when it came to finding an answer to this very important question and Aaron broaching the subject felt a little like he was being thrown a life preserver. He knew he could talk to Danny about it, and he would, but in this moment he wanted very badly to know how Aaron had handled the decision. "I mean … you obviously decided you were ready. How did you know?"

Steve's eyes focused on the waves rolling gently onto the beach but Aaron was positive his lack of eye contact was not at all indicative of his level of interest in the answer. He considered his next words carefully.

"To be honest I don't think there's any way to ever be 100% sure. At least not with your first kid. It's all uncharted territory. No matter how much time you've spent with other people's kids … it's different when you're taking on the father role yourself. Nothing can really prepare you for it."

Steve nodded thoughtfully. "So how did you decide you were ready even though you couldn't be 100% sure?"

Aaron leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees.

"I talked to my dad. I knew he'd probably had a lot of the same thoughts when he and my mom were thinking about adopting me. I figured maybe he could give me some insight. Turns out I was right. He gave me a really good piece of advice."

Aaron looked at Joan, sitting on the grass talking non-stop to Cammie while examining a stone from the flower bed. He tried to remember what his life was like before he met Mary and she and Joan became part of his world but he couldn't. More and more everyday he realized he couldn't picture his life without them in it.

Nor did he want to.

"Care to share?" Steve asked with a soft smile. He took note of the way Aaron looked at Joan, with unbridled love and joy, and he was once again thankful this man had found his way into the lives of his sister and niece.

"He said you need to let your love be stronger than your fear," Aaron replied. "It's as simple as that."

Steve paused.

It was good advice, and it sounded simple enough, but somehow it felt almost like an unreachable goal to him.

He wasn't like a lot of other people.

What if his love wasn't enough?

What if he couldn't give a child everything it needed?

"You told me once your parents brought you up with good communication skills. That they taught you to talk about your feelings and get things out in the open."

"They did," Aaron acknowledged.

"That's important when it comes to being a dad, right? You have to be able to talk about things. To explain things."

Aaron nodded.

"I'm not … it's just … I'm not always that great at communication. I'm working on it. And I'm lucky that most of the time Catherine gets what I'm thinking without me having to say it. But still … "

Aaron took a few seconds to let Steve's concerns sink in. He had no doubt in his own mind Steve would make a great father but he needed to find a way to help Steve see that for himself. Like Mary, Steve had a tendency to focus on his potential weaknesses in matters like this as opposed to looking at his long list of strengths. Aaron knew from experience with Mary that Steve would never feel confident until he found a way to make peace with what he perceived as his own shortcomings.

Once he gathered his thoughts he looked Steve straight in the eyes.

"Wanna know what I think? I think you're not as bad at this communication thing as you think. I mean … I know it doesn't come easily for you but I also know you don't let that stop you from trying. And personally I think it's a good thing for a kid to see a parent acknowledge something they're not great at and then see them work hard at getting better. What better lesson can we teach our kids, right?"

As Aaron's words sank in Steve's entire demeanor lightened. "I hadn't really thought of it that way."

"If we all waited until we were perfect to have kids mankind would have died out centuries ago."

Steve chuckled. "Good point."

They watched as Joan and Cammie, bored with the flower bed, moved on to their next adventure.

"Sounds like you and Catherine have some decisions to make."

Steve nodded. "I think you're right. As soon as she finishes up this case with the lieutenant governor."

* * *

"Hey," Steve smiled as Catherine came out onto the deck carrying assorted serving platters and utensils. "Everything straight with Lt. Gov. Kekoa?"

"I think so." Catherine placed the trays on the counter then crossed the deck and took the seat next to Steve's. "She wants me to get started first thing tomorrow morning."

"Sounds good. The quicker you get things going the quicker these women can get home to their families."

"One of the biggest problems they're having is that telecommunications service in so much of Afghanistan is … spotty at best. There's been a real issue getting even the most basic information back and forth. Some of the women haven't had a chance to talk to their families yet and are so desperate to, which is understandable, they're not able to concentrate on giving the investigators the information they need.

I'm hoping I can call in a few favors and get some sat phones so that at the very least everyone can communicate with their family."

Catherine pulled out her phone and glanced at the time.

"It's after 1:00 A.M. there now but later on I'll make a few calls and see if we can get some things set up right away. Tomorrow hopefully."

"Sounds like the lieutenant governor came to the right person for help," Aaron said, clearly impressed, as he stepped off the deck to retrieve Joan's shoes.

"Damn right she did," Steve said proudly.

Catherine kissed his cheek. "Grace texted while I was on the phone. She's gonna come over a little early to help set up. She made some decorations for the tables and a banner for the railing."

Steve shook his head. "She's really something else."

"I hope you're talking about me," Mary said as she came through the back door, towel drying her hair.

"Actually I was talking about Gracie, but you're ok too," Steve smirked.

Mary tossed the towel at him. "Smart ass!"

"Smart ass!" Joan repeated clear as a bell.

"Ugh. I keep forgetting she's like a little tape recorder now," Mary cringed as she made her way to Joan's side and picked the little girl up.

"Mama shouldn't have said that word," Mary explained patiently. "It's not a nice word. I'm very sorry I said it and I'm gonna try really hard not to say it again."

"Okay," Joan said happily.

"Are you gonna try very hard not to say it again too?"

"Yes," Joan nodded adamantly. "I pwomise."

"That's my good girl," Mary smiled as she kissed Joan's cheek.

"Mama good girl too," Joan giggled.

Aaron caught his eye and Steve nodded as the words from their earlier conversation replayed in his mind. _"I think it's a good thing for a kid to see a parent acknowledge something they're not great at and then see them work hard at getting better."_

Steve stood and held his arms out to Joanie. "What do you say we take Cammie for a long walk on the beach to burn off some energy before everybody gets here?"

"Kids comin?" Joan asked excitedly.

"They'll be here in a little while," Catherine replied.

"YAY!" Joan clapped her hands.

"Maybe we better put your shoes back on," Aaron suggested. "The sand is pretty hot."

He got two steps away from Joan and she held out her hands for the shoes.

"I can do it."

* * *

An hour later Grace and Danny arrived bearing several boxes of decorations. Grace was proudly wearing her blue SEAL Challenge t-shirt.

"Gwace!" Joan squealed happily.

"Hi Joan!" Grace bubbled as she picked up the excited young girl. "I'm so glad to see you."

"I hope you brought lots of pictures of the competition," Mary said, indicating Grace's shirt. "I got the ones you sent with the email about your times but knowing your dad, and your aunt and uncle, there have to be more."

"Maybe a few more," the teenager grinned.

"You did really great," Aaron said sincerely. "That's quite an accomplishment. You should be very proud of yourself."

"Thanks," Grace blushed. "I am. But I couldn't have done it without Uncle Steve's help."

"You worked hard, Gracie," Steve said proudly. "I helped you with the workout routine but the drive and determination were all you. You put in all the hard work running, working out and swimming. Don't minimize that."

Grace beamed and Aaron smiled knowingly. Steve may not have fully realized it yet but Aaron was confident he had the whole communication issue well under control.

"Unca Steve, we go swimmin?" Joan asked hopefully.

Steve glanced at his watch. "Sure we can go for a little bit before everyone gets here."

"YAY!" Joan jumped up and down excitedly.

Suddenly Grace had an idea and she began practically vibrating with excitement. "Hey, Uncle Steve, maybe Joan can be the youngest female to ever take the SEAL challenge."

Steve's eyes sparkled.

"Oh geez," Danny grumbled. "Look what you're doing to my daughter."

"I don't know," Aaron grinned. "I think as role models go Uncle Steve is a pretty good one."

"He's not pretty good," Grace smiled brightly. "He's the best."

 _ **THE END**_

* * *

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 _Looking for links to all the REAL World McRoll stories in one place? Check out our Tumblr page_

 _mcrollintherealworld dot tumblr dot com._

 _In addition, one of our AWESOME REAL Worlders, katydid13, has created a community on here on fanfiction dot net that brings all of the REAL World stories, and all of Mari, Sammy & Ilna's pre-universe stories in one place. You can find it at_

 _community/McRoll-in-the-Real-World_


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